Sonargaon Upazila

Sonargaon Upazila (narayanganj district) area 171.67 sq km, located in between 23°32' and 23°46' north latitudes and in between 90°31' and 90°41' east longitudes. It is bounded by araihazar and rupganj upazilas on the north, munshiganj sadar and gazaria upazilas on the south, meghna and Gazaria upazilas on the east, bandar, narayanganj sadar, Rupganj upazilas and demra thana on the west.

Population Total 400358; male 204438, female 195920; Muslim 385539, Hindu 14484, Buddhist 67, Christian 235 and others 33.

Water bodies Main rivers: meghna, shitalakshya, old brahmaputra (moribund).

Administration Sonargaon Thana was turned into an upazila in 1983.

Upazila
Municipality	Union	Mouza	Village	Population		Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
				Urban	Rural		Urban	Rural
1	10	257	398	32796	367562	2332	62.6	53.9

Municipality
Area (sq km)	Ward	Mahalla	Population	Density (per sq km)	Literacy rate (%)
9.06	9	60	32796	3620	62.6

Union
Name of union and GO code	Area (acre)	Population		Literacy rate (%)
		Male	Female
Kachpur 43	3102	31228	29506	62.9
Jampur 34	5218	22824	22007	52.5
Noagaon 60	3150	10974	11602	44.8
Pirijpur 69	4239	24707	20733	59.8
Baradi 27	3465	12478	13285	41.9
Baidyer Bazar 24	2251	11658	11377	42.1
Mugra Para 51	2089	17299	16207	62.7
Shambhupura 86	3859	13017	13629	55.3
Sanmandi 94	5054	18918	19111	51.8
Sadipur 77	4588	24523	22479	49.0

Source Bangladesh Population Census 2011, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

Archaeological heritage and relics Single domed mosque built by Jalaluddin Fatheh Shah (1489 AD), Tomb of Sultan Ghiyasuddin Azam Shah (1410 AD), single domed mosque built by Alauddin Hussain Shah (1522), Tomb of Shah Langar (1422), Panch Pir Dargah, grand trunk road, khasnagar dighi, Company Kuthi, yusufganj mosque, goaldi mosque (1519), langalband (holy bathing spot), Panam Nagar.

Historical events From 1335 to 1535 AD Sonargaon was the capital and the administrative headquarters of the eastern region of Bengal at different periods. Globe trotter ibn battuta of Morocco visited Sonargaon in 1346 AD.

War of Liberation One freedom fighter was killed in an encounter with the Pak army at Panam during the war of liberation. During this time the Pak army conducted mass killing at villages Sammandi, Pirijpur and Chilarbag of the upazila.

For details: see সোনারগাঁও উপজেলা, বাংলাদেশ মুক্তিযুদ্ধ জ্ঞানকোষ (Encyclopedia of Bangladesh War of Liberation), বাংলাদেশ এশিয়াটিক সোসাইটি, ঢাকা ২০২০, খণ্ড ১০।

Religious institutions Mosque 460, temple 36, tomb 10. Noted religious institutions: Single domed mosque built by Jalaluddin Fatheh Shah (1489 AD), singled domed mosque built by Alauddin Hussain Shah (1522), Yusufganj Mosque, Goaldi Mosque (1519).

Literacy rate and educational institutions Average literacy 54.6%; male 56.7%, female 52.5%. Educational institutions: college 4, institution 1, secondary school 6, primary school 82, community school 26, satellite school 9, madrasa 10. Noted educational institutions: Sonargaon Degree College (1969), Kazi Fazlul Haque Womens' College (1988), Sonargaon GR Institution (1900), Baradi Multilateral High School (1900), Panchami Ghat High School (1909), Ribor Pilot Girls' High School (1916), Jampur Majher Char MSGK High School (1918), Baidyer Bazar NM Pilot High School, Hossainpur High School, Mohojampur High School, Mograpara HGGS Smriti Biddayatan (1934).

Newspapers and periodicals Irregular: Sonargaon Kagoj, Sonargaon Porikroma (monthly), Sonargaon Patrika.

Cultural organisations Library 3, club 26, women organisation 1, jatra group 5, cinema hall 6, playground 19.

Tourist spots Bangladesh Folk Art and Crafts Foundation at Sonargaon.

Main sources of income Agriculture 25.95%, non-agricultural labourer 2.60%, industry 4.27%, commerce 23.74%, transport and communication 4.51%, service 20.31%, construction 1.61%, religious service 0.31%, rent and remittance 4.68% and others 12.02%

Ownership of agricultural land Landowner 52.49%, landless 47.51%; agricultural landowner: urban 32.55% and rural 52.79%.'

Main crops Paddy, potato, sugarcane, jute, sesame, masur, khesari, vegetables.

Extinct or nearly extinct crops Kaun, linseed, mustard.

Main fruits Mango, litchi, banana, jackfruit, papaya.

Fisheries, dairies and poultries Fishery 12, poultry 780, hatchery 5.

Communication facilities Pucca road 147.32 km, semi-pucca 41.99, mud road 174.94 km.

Extinct or nearly extinct traditional transport Palanquin, horse carriage, bullock cart.

Noted manufactories Garments factory, cement factory, spinning mill, steel mill, printing mill, rolling mill, paper mill, oil mill, textile mill.

Cottage industries Goldsmith, blacksmith, weaving, wood work, bamboo work, cane work.

Hats, bazars and fairs Hats and bazars are 16, fairs 6, most noted of which are Ananda Bazar Hat, Kaikartek Hat, Folk Art and Crafts Mela, Luknath Brahmachari Mela, Gachhtala Mela at Mangalgram,' Pagla Mela at Hamchadi and Bou Mela at Udbhabganj.

Main exports Industrial products, sari, cotton fabrics, vegetables.

Access to electricity All the unions of the upazila are under rural electrification net-work. However 96.9% of the dwelling households have access to electricity.

Sources of drinking water Tube-well 92.9%, tap 4.9% and others 2.2%. The presence of arsenic has been detected in shallow tube-well water of the upazila.

Sanitation 77.0% of dwelling households of the upazila use sanitary latrines and 21.6% of dwelling households use non-sanitary latrines; 1.4% of households do not have latrine facilities.

Health centres Upazila health complex 1, health and family planning centre 11, satellite clinic 3, clinic 10. Natural disasters The cyclone of 1969 caused heavy damages to settlements of the village Nazirpur Neelkanda under Sanmandi union of the upazila.

NGO activities Operationally important NGOs are brac, proshika, asa, VARC, thengamara mahila sabuj sangha. [Shamsuddoha Chowdhury]

References Bangladesh Population Census 2001 and 2011, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics; Cultural survey report of Sonargaon Upazila 2007.